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JNat Help

I recently started honing with Jnats and have been running into an issue. It seems like after maybe 3 weeks my edges are horrible. It is a rather quick decrease in shave quality too. Shaves go from good to horrible after only a few days. When the razor is fresh off the hone, I get the smoothest, most comfortable shaves I have ever had. I could probably stop after the first pass and be good. With the second pass I can go almost 2 days before you notice stubble. I haven't changed anything else in my shave routine. Out of curiosity I hit a crox strop last night for a few passes before my shave this morning. It helped a little, but the razor definitely needs to go back to the stones.

I've been honing with Naniwa Superstones for a few years now and typically can go 3 or 4 months between honing. I typically go 3k, 8k, then 12k with a few laps on Cr Ox strop to finish. I great really comfortable shaves from that progression. The shaves I get from the Jnats are smoother than that. I shave 5 days a week with the same razor. It is a Portland Razor Co Hydra. I typically only strop on leather before each shave with an occasional strop on cloth to clean the blade a little. I have been straight shaving for maybe 4 years now.

The set up is a Shobudani Awasedo with Botan, Tenjyou, and Mejiro from Keith. I progress through the Nagura, doing 2 slurries with each before moving to the next. I do 2 slurries with the Tomo and then finish with just water on the stone.

I know that when I first started out with the Superstones there were times that I just didn't get it quite right and had to re-hone. But that was usually apparent from the first shave. With the Jnat I am getting maybe 10 good shaves before I start having problems. Maybe my stropping is off? I have only honed the razor twice now on the stones and honed 2 other's with success. So I am very new to Jnats. I just want to make sure to correct any issues early before they become bad habits. Thanks!
 
My edge longevity increased by quite a bit when I started hitting the cotton component after each shave. You don't need many laps; I do about 20. This also serves to dry the edge and clean any residual gunk off so that you've got clean steel on clean leather when you strop before the next shave.

Beforehand I was getting maybe a couple dozen shaves before I'd need a touch-up. Now I've got a Friodur that I last honed on a Nakayama kiita in 2016 with more than 200 shaves on it and the edge is still good - not the laser that it was when fresh, but still a good shaver.
 
IME the effectiveness of fabric secondaries varies dramatically. I have a hemp secondary that I do 55 laps on when I use it, and a polyester fire hose secondary that I only do 3 laps on.

To be clear I only use one of the secondaries at a time. The hemp is in my travel set up, and the poly is on my home set up.
 
Ok, I can give it a shot. I honestly never really noticed a difference with the Superstone edges when I used the cloth strop, which is why I only use it once a week or so.
 
I recently started honing with Jnats and have been running into an issue. It seems like after maybe 3 weeks my edges are horrible. It is a rather quick decrease in shave quality too. Shaves go from good to horrible after only a few days. When the razor is fresh off the hone, I get the smoothest, most comfortable shaves I have ever had. I could probably stop after the first pass and be good. With the second pass I can go almost 2 days before you notice stubble. I haven't changed anything else in my shave routine. Out of curiosity I hit a crox strop last night for a few passes before my shave this morning. It helped a little, but the razor definitely needs to go back to the stones.

I've been honing with Naniwa Superstones for a few years now and typically can go 3 or 4 months between honing. I typically go 3k, 8k, then 12k with a few laps on Cr Ox strop to finish. I great really comfortable shaves from that progression. The shaves I get from the Jnats are smoother than that. I shave 5 days a week with the same razor. It is a Portland Razor Co Hydra. I typically only strop on leather before each shave with an occasional strop on cloth to clean the blade a little. I have been straight shaving for maybe 4 years now.

The set up is a Shobudani Awasedo with Botan, Tenjyou, and Mejiro from Keith. I progress through the Nagura, doing 2 slurries with each before moving to the next. I do 2 slurries with the Tomo and then finish with just water on the stone.

I know that when I first started out with the Superstones there were times that I just didn't get it quite right and had to re-hone. But that was usually apparent from the first shave. With the Jnat I am getting maybe 10 good shaves before I start having problems. Maybe my stropping is off? I have only honed the razor twice now on the stones and honed 2 other's with success. So I am very new to Jnats. I just want to make sure to correct any issues early before they become bad habits. Thanks!


Doesn't really make sense that you are fine with synthetics but not with a Jnat edge when it comes to stropping.
Stropping doesn't change no matter the honing.
What are you using before your naguras? Going too fine then to Botan is a giant step backwards causing edge degradation before improvement.
Are you getting the same results with different razors? Some razors do not like certain Jnats. They might be ok with a softer one or even a harder one. Not many razors like all mediums.
Try a different approach. Take the razor to 8k then just the Tomo, then water if you like.
 

Steve56

Ask me about shaving naked!
Yes, it doesn’t seem to make sense unless maybe the stone is of marginal fineness or maybe too much/thick slurry if you’re finishing on slurry.

I’ve completed 2 edge longevity tests using only a Kanoyama 3-piece strop and got 62-67 shaves. I’m currently testing a Filly Sub Cero and on shave 47 with plenty of ’headroom’ left.
 
I have not honed any of my razors in almost a year, yes I do have a 12 razor rotation but I just grab one of the 12 so you should be getting more shaves

Could possibly be stropping but you should not have to do more than 20-25 laps on a strop to maintain an edge, I would look into maybe a slightly over honed razor where the edge is so fine as in like a foil edge but it breaks down very quickly so maybe hone one then look at it under a loupe after each shave
 
Are you sure all your stones are lapped flat?

What do the edges look like under magnification when they come off the stone and what do they look like when they stop cutting well?
 
On my ozuku jnat I finish on a really really light slurry ( you barely notice it). Water only laps seemed to degrade the edge.

Probably it is my fault due to inexperience but I get decent edges that way. Sharp yet comfortable.
 
Thanks for all the responses. Sorry I haven't responded sooner, been busy at work and traveling. I start with the naguras. I assume the stone is flat, it comes from Keith who is very reputable. I haven't tried looking with the loupe yet, I'll do that when I rehone Monday. Maybe I am spending too much time on the stones and over honing. I have a couple things to try. I'm sure I can figure it out. The shaves are great when I first hone, so I want to get to the point of a proper edge so they are all amazing. I'll try some other razors too when I have some time. Got a couple other new ones and a bunch on vintage razors to try.
 
Maybe I am spending too much time on the stones and over honing.


I don't think it is over honing. If it were, the edge would be gone pretty quickly, it certainly wouldn't make 10 good shaves.
Without good magnification it is a guessing game so trial and error will solve it...sort of.
This is the reason I ask about other razors. If you did the exact same thing on a different razor things might be the best ever, you don't know if its the steel, razor or stone.
My thinking is that the edge, even though it shaves great at first, may not really be that great. There might be anomalies in the edge that make it degrade faster than an edge without them.
Magnification truly lets you figure things out MUCH faster. It allows you verify that it is either the razor, steel or stone by using the same process on a different razor, or even two. You can see what is taking place along the way and at what point things are going south.
For me, steel is as diverse as the stones we use.
Very few razors like all mediums. Some razors are very particular to specific stones or types of stones. This leads to much confusion to people learning to hone.
 
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